Proposed cuts of £1 billion to defense spending could leave Britain exposed if tensions in the South China Sea, where Britain has ‘huge commercial interests,’ escalate to war, according to Defence Secretary Michael Fallon.

He made his comments at
a major defense conference in Singapore.

Fallon told the Times: “The world is becoming a darker, more
dangerous place.”

He warned against the “potential for miscalculation [in the
South China Sea], for misunderstanding to escalate if it’s badly
handled by a local commander.”

He also contested the need for cuts on the scale proposed by the
Treasury.

“My job is to make sure that the armed forces have what they
need to keep Britain safe. That’s what I’ll be negotiating with
the chancellor,” said Fallon.

He added the South China Sea – where China has recently started
building artificial islands for reasons of both “defense
needs” and “international responsibilities and
obligations” – is a region of “huge commercial interest
to us, to Western Europe, and to the global trading system.”

On Friday, it was reported Chancellor George Osborne had told the
Ministry of Defence (MoD) to find £1 billion worth of cuts.

The move could also end Britain’s ability to meet the symbolic
contribution of two percent of gross domestic product (GDP) to
NATO, a topic of fierce debate in the run-up to the recent
general election.

One ministry insider warned the Times newspaper that defense
austerity, applied to this extent, would “not be a thing you
could just swallow and carry on.”

China is not alone in extending its influence in the region.

In March, a defense minister announced one of the UK’s most
advanced military satellites would be repositioned over the
Asia-Pacific region to provide secure communications to Britain's
allies.

The Skynet 5A satellite is owned and operated by the global arms
firm Airbus Defence and Space.

The “hardened” satellites orbit earth in a
“constellation” composed of eight separate units,
providing the MoD with all its global “Beyond Line Of
Sight” (BLOS) communications capacity.

In a statement published on the MoD website, Defence Minister
Phillip Dunne said: “Today’s announcement that Airbus will be
moving one of the UK’s Skynet 5 satellites to the eastern
Asia-Pacific region is clear proof of how much our relationships
with our international allies matter.

“This is the first time that we have had a secure
communications capability in the region, and shows the depth of
our commitment to our allies and partners in the region,
including Malaysia, in humanitarian and peacekeeping
operations.”